Henry Beasley: Presidential Candidate

1) Who are you, and which office are you campaigning for? What makes you our best choice? Why do you want to serve in this capacity?My name is Henry Beasley and I am campaigning for President and
Business Agent of our local. A new direction, new ideas and a fresh
approach with a foundation of education to take our Union into the future and
move away from the “status quo” culture we currently have.

As a rank-in-file
member I saw that our local has refused to collect data on our situation on
attacks on transit workers. It is vital that we collect information
to prove that there is an actual issue in our work place. I even
provided copies of the collected stats to our current and past representatives
and was ignored, yet they say that it is their main priority; this says a lot
about the status quo.I believe that I’m the best choice because I’m willing to
work with members who have ideas to make our local better. I believe that leaders
must lead, and I have shown that by taking on many issues we have in the
workplace and working with others to bring these issues to the forefront (just
look at the others campaign posters on assaults).I believe in our
membership and the strength that we have but have been angered that our local
has been made a joke of in recent times. To view our representatives
getting laughed (smirked) at in a recent Board of Directors meeting shows us
that if they don’t respect them, then they don’t respect the workforce. Without
the right to strike our local has not showed members that we do have strength
in numbers in the workplace, just look at the last 3 contracts at our largest
property. The status quo has destroyed our solidarity and morale in the workplace
and our belief in our local’s leadership. I believe that serving the
members as the main responsibility of a representative and will do so if I’m
elected President.2) What do you believe to be the membership’s main concerns (from your office’s perspective) moving forward through 2020? How would you work toward improving these areas?Two (of many) concerns are Workplace Safety and communications
with the union hall. At our biggest property we have two main
issues: attacks and injuries with the 30 series buses while dealing with
Worker's Comp.

I believe that collecting stats is the best way
leadership can best articulate our issues to the Board of Directors, the media,
and the public. Just look at all the statements, in print and
televised, our side has make broad assumptions with no evidence to back those
statements. When I gave them the statistics (dates, types of incidents) they
simply ignored it; this makes our statements to the media look
weak. The same thing can be said in recent Board of Director’s
meeting, when our representatives had the data on 2017’s 93 (attacks), yet said
only 4 (2018 at the time), which would have the most impact?

The other
issue is the injuries with the 30 series busses while dealing with Worker’s
Comp, there are many members who have had to jump through hoops to be made
whole after being injured on the job. In dealing with the third
party (company uses) and its tactics, the member is pushed to come back to work
sooner or be fired for time lost. We need to put out a survey to our current
and former employees (that have been fired or medically retired) which include
OSHA criteria and gather stats to determine the commonality of injuries and move
forward if an OHSA claim is warranted or at least provide a road map for
dealing with Worker’s Comp. we must END the practice of expecting members to
foot the bill for legal representation, when our local should be taking on this
issue.

Lastly, communication is a major concern emails and calls go
unanswered. It is time that we use social media and YouTube to get out the
messages of the membership in real-time. We need to shrink our local
when it comes to its ability to communicate with representatives. We
have successfully used Facebook Live to interact with members in real time and
members have felt that they can ask questions and get answers
immediately. If elected we are going to continue to do that monthly
with the Presidents, Vice President, Secretary Treasures report that would
normally go into the Labor Press. For years, we have been talking
about YouTube and getting it up and going again. We can use it
effectively in recording our collective actions, and officer reports which
should include executive board officers monthly report.3) Assaults are on the rise every year. Do you believe operator barriers are the answer? What are the pros and cons of the barriers? What else could be done to stop this escalating problem?

We need to bring our statistics in front of the board and
push for a reopening of the Fare Inspector job classification. With those
statistics, we can prove that the company is not reasonably protecting Transit
workers while they're on the job. We need a presence in the system and an
enforcement of the codes of conduct.

The company is more concerned about
ridership numbers than reasonable safety for Transit workers. This is the very
reason we keep statistics, to provide case to the public, the media, and the
Board of Directors. And just so we're clear on the attacks issue on buses,
there's a couple of things that we need to do is separate the fare enforcement
division from the code enforcement division, shrink our districts so that the
response time is better. As operators, we were not asked if we liked the
barriers they are now ordering, to be clear we are not talking about
management’s team but ALL union members. We took a straw poll and members would
prefer monitors on the bus instead of being trapped behind door that provides
some support, yet assailants can still attack operators because of the
openings. We need true driver cabins like they have in Europe, which is
completely enclosed. Seattle is number one in safety and yet have
only six barriers total, we need to work closely with our union fellowship and
see what they had done to become number one.

We are almost on the anniversary of those who lost their
lives on the MAX, and what has the company done to provide reasonable safety
and security for riders and employees. It's time we told the truth of our
reality of safety in the district.4) Since we cannot strike, how can we ensure that our union membership concerns will be taken seriously by management? Do you have any creative strategies to ensure constructive dialog and positive actions?

We need to know our obligations to our employer. We do not
work for free, but they have been benefiting from our labor for many
years. When on-time performance came into play we have been forced
to come in early to get our busses and trains out on the road on the scheduled
time of departure. We are not being paid and must stop, the advice we can give
is not to go out to vehicles until after your sign-in times and follow your
SOPs to the letter.

When you receive a SIP from management with a “come see me”
attached, we are asking for members to schedule an appointment (with your work
schedule) with the managers. Do not go in during your off time,
which include split times or after scheduled work even if they offer a
time-slip. The more they must use an extra-board operator for these
meetings, the more these erroneous complaints will be investigated and taken
out of your file. “SAY NO TO THE RDO,” has been said for years, and
is the most effective way to withhold our labor without the right to strike and
with a coordinated act at sign ups we can state our case that we are
serious.

TriMet is our largest contract, the vision for
constructive/positive action is a version of a “WORK’S COUNCIL.” The council is
a "shop-floor" committee representing workers made up of elected
union members. Currently at TriMet, we have several committees that have been
selected by them to represent what “THEY WANT” in a joint labor/management setting.
In 2012 or 2013 TriMet had conducted an online survey on which labeled workers
as a “good or hostile” then increasingly those type of committees started
appearing. They are presented at the Board of Directors meetings and touted as
real, when in fact it’s just an act. In these committees, we are not equals, we
do not shape policy or even have a “say so.” The new WORKPLACE COUNCIL will
replace existing committees and present our side at the Board of directors
meeting. Hopefully, presenting as an equal, we can finally eliminate the
unnecessary and excessive need for constant litigation between the two
parties. The goal of the committee is to resolve issues with
management in real time instead of always ending up in arbitration for every
disagreement. In the past there was a clause in the collective
bargaining where both sides had to meet monthly; it's time we brought this back
this time with our various departments represented in the Workplace Council.
The TriMet property needs to be self-sustaining so that the Local can focus on
all of the properties equally and get rid of the stigma that “it’s all about
Portland.”

5) The local media message is controlled by management. How do you propose to engage the media and help the public understand the issues we face?

We had this issue with management controlling the media at
the time our President was debating placing adds on busses, and I disagreed and
suggested that we go with other local Circulars such as
StreetRoots. The reasonings were that these types of papers come out
monthly, so our stories run longer then going with the Oregonian or the
Portland Tribune. We are still using it to this day (although I never got
credit for it) which is a testament of a good idea that worked.

For
every story that comes out we need to be prepared with a press release, in
response. The President needs to be the one in front of the camera
giving our side of the story, unless otherwise previously
engaged. Every interview that we have the President needs to be
dressed appropriately and briefed on the subject covered with precise short
answers. Back in 2016 I started a conversation with our representatives
at the retirees meeting, in the speech I gave talked about getting the public’s
attention. “Who We Are” was the subject of the speech, for our local to have
a better connection with the public. One of the strongest messages
we can tell the public just “who we are,” who we embody such as bus, rail,
school bus, service workers, para transit, mechanics etc. More importantly, who
Amalgamated Transit Union is. It was a “call to action” that would have been
set for Labor Day. We would hand out flyers and balloons handing them out to
public, with volunteers wearing ATU shirts and hats. That idea was
met with mixed reviews and a mix of extremes on both sides of the call to
action.

6) Social media is a very active and volatile tool within our membership. How will you use it to communicate with US?

Currently, in the campaign cycle the incumbents have the
advantage of visiting all the properties while challengers must play catch up
to get out and meet members in as many possible covering a massive
area. In my campaign we have utilized FaceBook Live as a tool to
talk to the membership and co-workers in a real-time. Question and
answer sessions while discussing platform and plans for the next three years if
elected. We have successfully completed four sessions and find that
members were very receptive with that idea of “real-time” chat with
representatives. The plan is to deliver the top three’s monthly
reports and take questions in real-time. We will have to change the
privacy setting on the local’s page to private, so that it’s a “members only
page.” Union business such as strategies and financials and will be
strictly prohibited, it will resemble the monthly reports in the Labor Press
with a question and answer session after the individual report given.

7) Members are upset with the arbitration process and how the union communicates decisions to the membership. Is this process broken? If so, please state your ideas on how to improve arbitration procedures.

We have too many grievances that go to arbitration. We
average 4 grievances for a vote to move to arbitration per
month. Most of those grievances come from TriMet and if elected and
get the Workplace Council off the ground with management agreeing to
participate, we can resolve disagreements especially with unjust or uneven discipline being handed out. More importantly, we need to
stop playing favorites and placing friendships ahead of others in line for
arbitration that is the part that’s broken. We must empower our Executive Board
(through the investigatory process) to inform members that they have a case or
not.

8) What’s your favorite union movie, and why?

Norma Rae, a story about taking charge in life and making a
difference. A union was the only way they were going to have a voice in the
workplace. The most powerful moment was when they were going to
arrest her, she refused to leave, then wrote the word UNION on a piece of paper
and held it up. As co-worker both supporters and fence riders saw
the non-verbal display and shut the machines in solidarity, a powerful scene.

9) How do we get more members involved, attending meetings and adding to the overall discussion?

We need to move to see if changing meeting week will allow
more member attendance. We especially have a welcoming meeting
without representatives attacking members who happen to disagree with
them. We will also draw questions (property specific) from Facebook
Live to continue adding to the discussion during the meetings.

10) I’ve only asked questions on a few points. Please let us know what other issues you believe are vital as we move forward.

In the Janus era, unions need to reevaluate what our
foundation will be built on. Three things: diversity,
inclusion, and equity.

1 comment:

For what it's worth, I read this post last night on my tablet. I endorse Henry Beasley for ATU 757 President, the ATU needs to make operator safety priority #1. This issue needs so much visibility as to increase pressure to find and prosecute the low-life scumbags who assault the limbs of the transit-riding public.

Deacon Who?

(Note: Ideas and opinions expressed in this blog are not necessarily shared by the transit agency I work for. This is simply an expression of free speech while describing the work bus operators perform.)
I have been (and called) many things in this life. Most of all, I'm a writer who happens to drive a bus. In May of '13 I thought it would be fun to write about my job. As a direct result of this blog, I published a book in November of 2017 called "JUST DRIVE - Life in the Bus Lane" that is available on Amazon. I write to provide insight as to what it's like on a bus... From The Driver Side. Thank you for reading!